Cap wrench



Nov. 15, 1932. L E, BALTZLEY 1,887,615

CAP WRENCH Filed July 7, 1931 Patented Nov. 15, 1932i` PATENT OFFICE LOUIS E. BALTZLEY, OF GLEN RIDGE-NEW JERSEY CAP WRENCH Application filed .Tuly 7,

This invention relates to wrenches for removing or applying screw caps on bottles, jars and other containers.

The objects of the invention are to provide a simple inexpensive construction which will be self-adjusting to different size caps, which will be self-tightening, in the sense of automatically taking firmer hold in opposition to any slippage tendency, to provide such wrench in a convenient and easily handled, quickly applied form and readily reversible for either applying or removing screw closures.

The various novel features of construction, combinations and relations of parts by which the foregoing and other desirable objects are attained will be clear from the following specification, considered in conjunction with the drawing accompanying and forming part of the same. l

In the drawing there is shown a practical commercial embodiment of the invention adapted for general use but as suoli illustration is primarily for purposesof disclosure, it will be appreciated that the structure may be modified and changed, all within the broad scope and intent of the claims.

Fig. 1 is a plan View of the wrench as in use in the removal of a screw cap of the socalled Mason jar type; Fig. 2 is a broken A side elevation; Fig. 3 is a broken longitudinal sectional view as on line 3*?) of Fig. 1; Fig. 4: is a. plan view, on a reduced scale illustrating the adapatability of the wrench to smaller K size caps.

The body of the wrench is shown lin the form of a hollow handle 5, which serves asa lever for operation'of the device. At its inner or active end this lever is shown as forked or widened out in the form of a throat having the divergent side walls 6, 7, connected in braced relation by a top wall V8. p

As a practical matter, this entire handle structure may be formed of sheet metal in a single piece, with the top ofthe handle and the top piece 8 all in a single plane and with side portions folded down therefrom to provide the side walls 9 of the handle and the divergent side gripping walls 7 at the ends ofthe same. Extension ang'es 10 along theA 1931. Serial N0. 549,213.

edges of the handle sides are shown as folded under at the bottom of the handle to complete the handle enclosure and also to constitute abutments preventing collapse of the hollow handle structure under excessive gripping pressure about the same.

For engaging thev cap or structure to be rotated, aflexible strap is provided, such as indicated at 11, and this strap is arranged to forman article encircling loop bearing at opposite sides against the inclined walls form-A ing the fork of the loop.

One end of the strap, the end atthat side where pressure is applied to the wrench, is fixed to the handle structure and the other end is permitted to slide freely into the handle structure. l

ln the illustration, the anchorage of one end of the strap is accomplished by means of a a hook 12 attached to theV end ofthe strap and having an intermediate offset neck portion 18 of reduced width ladapted to be passed through the slot 14, cut in the side of the handle, such structure enabling the back ofthe hook when applied as in Fig. 1, to overlie and cover the slot in the handle and the nose of the hook to be concealed within the handle. Also in this construction, the looped end of the `hook carries part of the load against'the end of the handleand the offset neck 13 Vcarries part of the load against theinner end of the slotted handle.

The strap while properly flexible, is preferably substantially inextensible. Also, preferably it has a relatively smooth backor outer side, so as to slide freely atlthe loose side over the inclined wall of the confining throat. A closely woven fabric tape has been found suitable for the stra-p, the same possessing the necessary degrees of flexibility,'smooth ness and inextensibility.

At the inside, the strap shouldhave an efficient gripping face. For this reason, it has been found desirable to line the strap-with a facing of solid resilient vulcanized rubber.`

Both sides of the handle end are shown as slotted, so that the anchorage of the strap may be reversed to effect turning of a screw cap in either direction.

p. In Fig. 1, the anchorage 'of the lefthand -essential however, because after loop about the closure, withpressure of the side of the strap loop enables a leverage force to be applied left handedly, in the direction of the arrow 16 for unscrewing purposes.

Figs. 1 and 2 show how the device may be used by lowering the forked end of the handle over the top of the jar cap or other closure 17, with the loop of the strap encircling the cap and the top flange 8 positioningthe loop in this relation by its engagement over the` edge of the cap. The strap Vmay be made long enough to permit the free end of the saine to protrude from the handle, so that such end may be grasped in preliminarily adjusting the loop to the size of the closure. T his is not setting the closure into the convergent throat, the strap will be gripped suciently to the closure for relative rotation of the closure and handle to eect the necessary contracting movement of the strap about the closure. rihe strap takes hold firmly, substantially as soon as this first grip is effected, because of the frictional grip of the strap facing on the capl and because of the self-tightening characteristics of the device resulting from the fact that the pull on one side of the loo"i tends to wrap the strap the more tightly about the article and the more pressure applied in this tightening process clamps the otherwise free portion of the strap the more firmly against the article.

rllhus in Fig. l, it will be seen that with the force applied to the lever in the directiony of arrow 15, the pull on the loop at the inclined f wall 6, will tend to wrap the strap about the article, while pressure by inclined wall 7 at the opposite side of the loop will apply a force acting in the direction of arrow 18, to more' firmly grip the self-adjusting side of the loop against the cap. rllhese same characteristics make the device adjustable, without change,

to all varieties and sizes of caps within the range of loop sizes of the strap, as will be apparent from comparison of Figs. l and l.

The device may be used equally well for tightening' or loosening operations, upon reversal of the strap, which consists in Fig. l of unhooking the strap at one side of the handle and turning the strap over in the handle to bring the loose side where the hooked side was formerly and attaching the hook in such reversed relation.

The necessity for unhooking and reversing the anchorage of the strap may be obviated, for example, by providing hooks l2 at both ends of the strap as indicated in Fig. Ll, from which it will be plain that the hook which is not in actual service, may be either disengaged 0r without such disengagement, 'the excess strap may be permitted to accumulate by buckling or folding up within the hollow handle.

The gripping characteristics Von the inside of the strap and the free sliding characteristics on the outside of the strap are important,

enabling the strap to take quick firm hold on the article and at the saine time, to slide freely in the holder sufficiently to take up any initial slack.

While the structure illustrated constitutes a very practical embodiment of the invention, it will be apparent from the scopeof the following claims that the actual physical form of the invention may be modified in various respects, for instance, to answer particular conditions or requirements. The Vterms employed in describing and claiming the invention are to be interpreted accordingly in a descriptive rather than in a limited sense, eX- cept for limitations thatmay beimposed by the state of the prior art. Thus as regards the securing of the strap in the holder, it is possible that both ends of the strap. ordinarily maybe free for quick slidingadjustments inthe holder and actually remain free up to the moment when the strap takes hold of the object to be turned, such being accomplished, for example, by an automatic wedging action of one side of the strapin the holder.

.l/Vhat is Vclaimed is:

l.V A cap wrench, comprising a holderhaving convergent side walls, an article gripping strap having a loop portion engaged at opposite sides with said convergent side walls,M said strap being secured in the holder at one l of said convergent side walls and being free for self-adjusting movements over the other of said convergent side walls and reversible anchorage means enabling the securing ofn the strap interchangeably at either side of the loop.

2. A cap wrench, comprising a hollow handle forked to provide relatively inclinedfaces at one end of the same, a strap secured at onev end in the hollow handle and having an article encircling loop in the fork ofthe handle in engagement. at opposite sides with said inclined faces and means for selectively holding either end of the strap in the handle. Y

3. A cap wrench, comprisin@P a lever handle forked at one end and a ekible article engaging member having a looped article encircling portion entered in the fork of the handle, said loop being fixed at one side and freely adjustable at the opposite'side, said wrench including means enabling ready reversal of the fixed and the free sliding sides of the article engaging loop.

i 4. A wrench of the character disclosed," comprising a hollow handle forked at one end, a flexible strap having an article gripping loop entered in the fork of the handle and with the portions of strap at opposite sides of said 'loop `extended from the fork into the hollow of the handle and means for hiring one of said side portions of the strap to the handle, including ahook fixed to one end of the strap and having an offset neck portion of reduced width, the end of the handle being slotted to pass said reduced neck portion of the hook. I

5. A wrench of the character disclosed, comprising a one-piece handle of sheet material having a generally flat top part With down-turned sides divergently extending at one end of the handle to form a throat and connected in such divergent relation by the top part, the down-turned sides having inwardly directed flanges meeting across the bottom of the handle to complete a passage extending through the handlefrom the divergent sides at the end of the handle and an article encircling strap formed in a loop located with its opposite sides bearing against the divergent sides of the handle and with the top part connecting said divergent sides overlying the edge portions of such loop, means foi anchoring one end of the strap to the hollow portion of the handle andthe other end portion of the strap sliding freely through the handle.

6. A device of the character disclosed, comprising in combination, a handle having divergent side portions at one end, a strap disposed in the form of a loop between said divergent side portions of the handle, said strap having a frictional gripping surface at the inside of the loop for non-slipping engagement with a jar cap or the like and having a non-frictional outer surface'freely sliding over the inclined side portions of the handle, said strap being anchored to the handle at one end, whereby the side of the loop bearing against one of the inclined side portions is made fixed to the handle and the opposite side of the loop being free to slide inwardly over the opposite side portion of the handle, the handle` having a passage unrestrictedly receiving said fre-e sliding portion of the strap loop for enabling the loop to automatically contract and tighten upon the article gripped in the loop.

7. In a device of the character disclosed,

- the combination of a hollow handle havingY an inclined face exposed at one endof the same, an article encircling strap formed 1n a loop with one side of the loop bearing against said inclined face and the opposite side of the loop secured to the handle,the loop portion of the strap having a frictional gripping surface at the inside of the loop and the outer surface of the loop being relatively nonfrictional and having a free sliding operation against the inclined face and said Vfree sliding portion extending from said inclined face into the hollow'of the handle whereby upon gripping engagement of the inside of the loop with an article and the angular shifting of the handle to wrap the loop about the article, the inclined face of the handle may slide over the loose side of the loop and the slack portion ofthe strap may pass freely into the hollow of the handle.

8. In a device of the character disclosed,

the combination of a member having dii side article gripping surface, means for securing one side of the loop-to the member described and the opposite side of the loop having a free sliding engagement with the face of the side wall at that side of the loop.

9. In a device of the character disclosed, n the combination of almember having divergent side walls forming an'article receiving throat, an article encircling strap having a loop portion engaged in said article receiving throat and bearing at its opposite sides against the divergent side walls aforesaid, said loop portion of the strap having an article gripping inside surface and means for selectively securing either side of the strap loop to the member andthe Vside yof the loop not secured having a free sliding engagement against the side wall at that side of the loop for enabling a self-tightening wrapping action of the strap about an article gripped in the loop of the strap. y

10. In a device of the character disclosed, the combination of a member having divergent side walls forming an article receiving throat, an article encircling strap having a loop portion engaged in said article receiving throat and bearing at its opposite sides against the divergent side walls aforesaid, said loop portion of the strap having an article grippinginside surface and means for selectively securing either side of the strap loop to the member'and the side of the loopV not secured having a free sliding engagement against the side wall at that side of the loop for enabling a self-tightening wrapping action of the strap about an article gripped in the loop of the strap, said securing means including hook means on the strap, the handle being hollow for reception of the free sliding side of the loop vand for the hook means aforesaid, said hook means being engageable Y with the end portion of the hollow handle.

In testimony whereof Iaiiix my signature.

LOUIS E. BALTZLEY. 

